Part One: Rebecca Felton: The First Female Senator (was also a pro-lynching activist)
Summary
This episode of Behind the Bastards examines Rebecca Felton, technically the first female U.S. senator, who was a prominent white supremacist and advocate for lynching. Hosts Sam and Leonard discuss her privileged upbringing on a Georgia plantation, her family’s role in the Yazoo land fraud, and her complex views on slavery and the Civil War. The narrative highlights how her early life shaped her later political career and racist ideology.
Topics discussed
Intro and Ad Breaks
Rebecca Latimer Felton: First Female Senator
The Georgia Land Lottery and Trail of Tears
Childhood on a Slave-owning Plantation
Comparison to Gone With the Wind
Ad Breaks
Education, Marriage, and Early Adulthood
Views on Slavery and the Civil War
Post-War Racism and White Supremacy
Conclusion and Final Ad Breaks
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